Gen. Robert W. Cone assumes command of TRADOC

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Lt. Gen. Robert W. Cone was promoted to the rank of general today at Fort Monroe, Va.

Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, Chief of Staff of the Army, hosted an assumption of command for Gen. Cone, now the TRADOC commander.

Prior to the TRADOC assignment, Gen. Cone served as commander of III Corps and Fort Hood, Texas.

Gen. Cone has deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom/Operation New Dawn and Operation Enduring Freedom.

Gen. Robert W. Cone, U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command commanding general, receives the TRADOC colors from Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, Army Chief of Staff, before handing them back to Command Sgt. Maj. David M. Bruner, TRADOC senior enlisted adviser. Gen. Cone took command in a ceremony hosted by Gen. Dempsey today at Continental Park on Fort Monroe, Va.

Gen. Robert W. Cone, U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command commanding general, receives the TRADOC colors from Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, Army Chief of Staff, before handing them back to Command Sgt. Maj. David M. Bruner, TRADOC senior enlisted adviser. Gen. Cone took command in a ceremony hosted by Gen. Dempsey today at Continental Park on Fort Monroe, Va.

"When you look at [Gen. Cone's] career, you can't help but notice a common thread; he truly is a superb warrior, an accomplished scholar and a leader of consequence. He makes things happen," Dempsey said.

Cone came to TRADOC from a deployment in Iraq supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom/Operation New Dawn from March 2010 to Feb. 2011. Cone also served a deployment to Afghanistan in June 2007, supporting Operation Enduring Freedom as Commander, Combined Security Transition Command. Upon redeployment in Dec. 2008, he served briefly as Special Assistant, Commanding General, TRADOC before assuming command of III Corps and Fort Hood, Texas in Sept. 2009.

During his career, Cone has been an instructor and assistant professor at the Command and General Staff College. Cone graduated the Naval War College with a Master's Degree, served as director, Joint Center for Operational Analyses and served as commander of the National Training Center, Fort Irwin, Calif.

Cone said he was honored to be chosen to command TRADOC.

"The privilege of commanding such an outstanding organization as TRADOC, composed of our Army's finest Soldiers and civilians, is truly humbling," Cone said. "TRADOC's motto, 'Victory Starts Here' could not be more true."

Cone's wife, Jill, was also noted for her volunteer work and her professional service. Her volunteerism includes serving with animal shelters, spouses clubs, child care and scholarship committees and the Red Cross. Professionally, she has served as a financial analyst at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, the 11th Cavalry Regiment, III Corps and Fort Hood, U.S. Army Forces Command, Defense Logistics Agency, the Naval War College and U.S. Africa Command.

"You and all Army spouses are truly the unsung heroes of our great nation," Cone said. "You serve and love our Soldiers with such complete selflessness that your contributions are the gold standard of all that is virtuous."

Cone said assuming the reins at TRADOC will allow him to focus on the entire Army's future.

"When you're in a corps command that just got back from a warfighting effort, you're more involved in the day-to-day efforts," Cone said. "We do a lot of day-to-day stuff at TRADOC, but it's more about thinking about the future and shaping the Army."

Cone presided over the one-day TRADOC Commander's Conference Thursday and had the opportunity to meet his senior commanders and command sergeants major.

"I found out that they're a very dynamic, highly intelligent, very honest group of people," Cone said. "It's a great time and a lot of people liken it to when Gen. DePuy took over TRADOC at the end of the Vietnam War and saw that opportunity for an institution like TRADOC."

"The fact that we are here today with the Army's newest four-star general is a testament to all he has accomplished in his distinguished career," Dempsey said. "Importantly, it is also a testament to the confidence that the President, the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of the Army have in his abilities."